Despite winning two of three the previous week, the team needed a strong week to overcome last week’s loss to Charlotte that ended the week. When looking to continue their ascent up the standings, gaining wins as well as points is crucial throughout the year and continuing to do so will put them in a strong position as the year progresses.
| # |  Top Scorers | GP | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 39 | J.S. Dea | 57 | 15 | 24 | 39 |
| 17 | Sean Malone | 58 | 12 | 18 | 30 |
| 22 | Zach Redmond | 59 | 5 | 25 | 30 |
| 15 | Andrew Oglevie | 55 | 15 | 14 | 29 |
| 19 | C.J. Smith | 50 | 12 | 15 | 27 |
December 11: vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (W 4-2)
In their final game of this homestand, the Amerks opened the scoring with Curtis Lazar (6) at 7:04 of the first period, as both teams finished the first period with nearly identical shot totals. However, the second would see Rochester vastly outshoot their opponent 13-4, but would still manage only one goal, courtesy of Jean-Sebastian Dea at 7:17 for his ninth of the year, nearly identical to when Lazar scored in the first.
JS Dea went to the bench to get a new stick and got back into the play to score on this chance. Amerks up 2-0. pic.twitter.com/jWypJJIEYo
— LGA585 (formerly LetsGoAmerks) (@LGA585) December 12, 2019
Although both teams were unable to find the back of the net for a majority of the third, Andrew Oglevie scored his team-leading 10th goal with over seven minutes remaining, which was followed by CJ Smith (4) doubling lead in the third.
Bold move pulling the goalie with over 6 mins left. CJ Smith scores to put the Amerks up 4-0. pic.twitter.com/C6SQyxKYmF
— LGA585 (formerly LetsGoAmerks) (@LGA585) December 12, 2019
Despite Jan Drozg and Sam Miletic scoring to cut their team’s deficit in half with only a couple minutes left, the Amerks were able to end their homestand with a 4-2 win. Andrew Hammond (9-2-2) made 20 saves on the game after almost earning another shutout, continuing his dominant start.
December 13: @ Laval (W 3-2)
In the first of a back-to-back series in Laval, Casey Nelson got the Amerks off to a fast start, with his fourth of the season only 53 seconds into the game.
Carey Nelson scores 53 seconds into the game! Assists to Oglevie and Porter. pic.twitter.com/sOATRLu4As
— LGA585 (formerly LetsGoAmerks) (@LGA585) December 14, 2019
The lead wouldn’t last, as Charles Hudson’s power-play goal tied the game about a minute and a half later. With just over six minutes to go in the first, Sean Malone (6) scores a short-handed goal to give Rochester a 2-1 lead after twenty minutes of play. As the second began, Laval’s scoring chances would increase throughout the game but did not result in goals in the second period, which saw Jonas Johansson stop all 13 shots for the Amerks.
Eric Cornel scores on the rebound this time! Amerks up 3-1. Mugsy had taken the initial shot to produce the rebound. pic.twitter.com/FbHde8fhcG
— LGA585 (formerly LetsGoAmerks) (@LGA585) December 14, 2019
As the final period got underway, Eric Cornel (5) helped Rochester double their lead to 3-1, and would be a crucial goal as Nikita Jevpalovs trimmed Laval’s deficit back to one. That would be the closest the Rocket got, as Rochester earned the 3-2 win for their second straight despite the Amerks being outshot in the game 37-20. Johansson (8-2-2) finished the game with 35 saves and gave the Amerks the chance to win three straight on the road.
December 14: @ Laval (W 5-0)
After earning the win last game against the Rocket, Rochester continued where they left off, as a Zack Redmond power-play goal (4) gave his team the lead with over 7 minutes left in the opening period. The Amerks continued to earn scoring chances in the second, similar to what they did in the first, and just over five minutes into the second, John Gilmour scored his first goal as an Amerk to double their lead. Although the score through two periods was only a 2-0 Rochester lead, they held a double-digit lead in shots (23-13). However, the third period saw an offensive explosion, beginning with Jean Sebastian-Dea (10) scoring on the power-play just 14 seconds into the period.
Amerks up 3-0 14 seconds into the 3rd! Dea from Bryson and Gilmour. pic.twitter.com/CwZL4TMJth
— LGA585 (formerly LetsGoAmerks) (@LGA585) December 14, 2019
C.J. Smith (5) scored the Amerks’ third PPG of the game at 4:44 to build a four-goal lead. Brandon Hickey’s first goal of the season at the eleven-minute mark was the final goal of this game, as the Amerks earned another shutout in a 5-0 win. Andrew Hammond, in earning his fourth shutout on the year, made 27 saves, and along with a 3/5 effort on the power-play and 3/3 on the penalty kill, it was a strong night on all fronts for the Amerks.
Currently, on a three-game win streak, the Amerks will enter this next week playing a home-and-home series with Binghamton (20 pts) and will end the week hosting Utica (33 pts), who the Amerks have succeeded against this season. After spending a few weeks behind Toronto in the division, they were finally able to surpass the Marlies, and with an 18-4-2-2 record (40 pts) through 26 games, Rochester can continue to solidify their status and with Casey Mittlestadt joining the roster, that’s another player who can contribute to the team’s immense success thus far.
| Date | Opponent | Time/Result |
|---|---|---|
| 10/04/19 |  vs. Syracuse Crunch | W 3-2 (OT) |
| 10/11/19 |  @ Springfield Thunderbirds | W 2-1 |
| 10/12/19 |  @ Providence Bruins | L 3-2 |
| 10/13/19 |  @ Hartford Wolf Pack | W 3-2 (SO) |
| 10/18/19 |  vs. Cleveland Monsters | L 4-3 (SO) |
| 10/19/19 |  @ Utica Comets | L 7-1 |
| 10/23/19 |  vs. Hershey Bears | W 5-1 |
| 10/26/19 | @ Syracuse Crunch | W 7-6 (OT) |
| 10/27/19 | @ Springfield Thunderbirds | L 2-1 (OT) |
| 10/30/19 | vs. Providence Bruins | L 4-3 |
| 11/01/19 |  vs. Binghamton Devils | W 4-2 |
| 11/02/19 | @ Utica Comets | W 6-0 |
| 11/08/19 | vs. Binghamton Devils | L 4-3 (SO) |
| 11/13/19 | vs. Syracuse Crunch | W 4-3 |
| 11/15/19 | vs. Cleveland Monsters | W 4-3 (OT) |
| 11/16/19 | @ Utica Comets | W 4-3 |
| 11/22/19 | vs. Hartford Wolf Pack | W 4-0 |
| 11/23/19 | @ Binghamton Devils | W 4-2 |
| 11/29/19 |  vs. Toronto Marlies | L 3-2 (OT) |
| 11/30/19 | @ Cleveland Monsters | W 3-2 |
| 12/04/19 | vs. Toronto Marlies | W 4-0 |
| 12/06/19 |  vs. Charlotte Checkers | W 4-0 |
| 12/07/19 | vs. Charlotte Checkers | L 3-1 |
| 12/11/19 |  vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | W 4-2 |
| 12/13/19 |  @ Laval Rocket | W 3-2 |
| 12/14/19 | @ Laval Rocket | W 5-0 |
| 12/18/19 | @ Binghamton Devils | L 2-1 |
| 12/20/19 | vs. Binghamton Devils | W 3-0 |
| 12/21/19 | vs. Utica Comets | W 4-3 |
| 12/27/19 |  vs. Belleville Senators | W 4-3 |
| 12/28/19 | @ Binghamton Devils | L 2-0 |
| 12/31/19 | @ Utica Comets | L 3-2 |
| 01/03/20 | @ Belleville Senators | W 4-3 (OT) |
| 01/04/20 | @ Toronto Marlies | L 5-2 |
| 01/08/20 | vs. Binghamton Devils | L 4-3 (SO) |
| 01/10/20 | vs. Belleville Senators | L 5-1 |
| 01/11/20 | @ Syracuse Crunch | L 5-4 |
| 01/17/20 | vs. Cleveland Monsters | L 4-3 (SO) |
| 01/18/20 |  @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms | L 4-0 |
| 01/19/20 | @ Hershey Bears | L 4-1 |
| 01/22/20 | @ Cleveland Monsters | W 3-2 (OT) |
| 01/24/20 | vs. Laval Rocket | W 5-2 |
| 01/25/20 | @ Syracuse Crunch | W 3-2 |
| 01/31/20 | vs. Syracuse Crunch | W 4-2 |
| 02/01/20 | @ Binghamton Devils | W 3-2 |
| 02/05/20 | @ Cleveland Monsters | W 4-2 |
| 02/07/20 | vs. Syracuse Crunch | L 5-2 |
| 02/08/20 | @ Toronto Marlies | L 4-0 |
| 02/11/20 | @ Charlotte Checkers | L 4-2 |
| 02/12/20 | @ Charlotte Checkers | L 5-2 |
| 02/15/20 | @ Syracuse Crunch | W 4-3 (SO) |
| 02/16/20 | vs. Utica Comets | W 3-2 |
| 02/19/20 | vs. Belleville Senators | L 3-2 (OT) |
| 02/21/20 | vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms | W 3-2 (OT) |
| 02/22/20 | vs. Cleveland Monsters | L 3-2 (OT) |
| 02/26/20 | vs. Utica Comets | L 3-2 (SO) |
| 02/28/20 | vs. Laval Rocket | W 4-2 |
| 02/29/20 | @ Syracuse Crunch | L 4-2 |
| 03/04/20 | vs. Utica Comets | L 3-1 |
| 03/06/20 | @ Belleville Senators | W 5-3 |
| 03/07/20 | @ Belleville Senators | W 4-2 |
| 03/11/20 | vs. Binghamton Devils | L 5-2 |
| 03/13/20 | vs. Syracuse Crunch | 7:05 PM |
| 03/15/20 | @ Cleveland Monsters | 3:00 PM |
| 03/17/20 | @ Toronto Marlies | 1:30 PM |
| 03/20/20 | vs. Springfield Thunderbirds | 7:05 PM |
| 03/21/20 | vs. Springfield Thunderbirds | 7:05 PM |
| 03/25/20 | vs. Toronto Marlies | 7:05 PM |
| 03/28/20 | @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | 7:05 PM |
| 03/29/20 |  @ Bridgeport Sound Tigers | 3:00 PM |
| 04/01/20 | vs. Utica Comets | 7:05 PM |
| 04/03/20 | vs. Syracuse Crunch | 7:05 PM |
| 04/04/20 | @ Syracuse Crunch | 7:00 PM |
| 04/08/20 | @ Utica Comets | 7:00 PM |
| 04/10/20 | vs. Bridgeport Sound Tigers | 7:05 PM |
| 04/11/20 | @ Binghamton Devils | 7:05 PM |